Zoinks! Does the New Scooby-Doo Movie Practice Fat Shaming?

Scooby-Doo has never been exactly the most educational kids show, but the franchise's latest straight-to-video release, Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy, deliver...

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By TV Guide

Holland Sentinel

By TV Guide

Posted Sep. 2, 2014 at 9:06 PM

By TV Guide

Posted Sep. 2, 2014 at 9:06 PM

Scooby-Doohas never been exactly the most educational kids show, but the franchise's latest straight-to-video release, Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy, delivers a really poor message for viewers.

A clip for the movie (embedded below) depicts Daphne as the victim of a curse, and the subsequent loss of what she holds "most dear," which in her case, happens to be her looks. As a result of the curse, Daphne is transformed into an overweight version of herself — from a size 2 to a size 8, according to The Huffington Post, though the animation makes her look much, much larger — and she's absolutely horrified over the fact.

However, Warner Bros., the studio behind the movie, claims the film's story is actually positive. "All of our content is run through Standards and Practices, and there is always sensitivity to obesity and self image, especially when it comes to programming made for children and a family audience," Warner Bros. said in a statement to The Huffington Post. "Although you are correct that Daphne becomes bigger in the course of the story, the message is actually a much more positive one. ... While Daphne is at first upset by the sudden change, there is a touching moment where Fred points out that he didn't even notice a change and that she always looks great to him. At the end, when Velma explains how they figured out the mystery, she points out that the curse actually didn'ttake away what means the most to each of them: their friendship. The loss of Daphne's regular appearance is proven to be a superficial thing, and not what actually matters the most to her."